I have never liked Piers Morgan, so I haven’t watched many episodes of “Life Stories”. But, from the few that I have seen, he is as tough an interviewer as he ever was! So don’t expect him to go easy on them just because they are national treasures!

Just wanted to remind everybody that "Life Stories" will be starting in a few minutes on ITV, Scottish TV and Ulster TV.

Originally Posted by Olympia

I hope that whoever watches will give the rest of us a recap. I'm jealous of the entire United Kingdom!

I will be recording it tonight, and watching it over the weekend (probably tomorrow).

Hopefully somebody who knows how to upload programmes recorded from the TV will put the video on YouTube. So, I'll keep an eye out and let you know.

Failing that, I know that there are websites out there that you can download subtitles for programmes from. So, if the video doesn't appear, hopefully the subtitles will, and I can copy them into a comment on here as a transcript of the interview.

Meanwhile, somebody else has gone to the bother of recording the whole interview on their phone. It’s a bit shaky, but considering how long each part of the programme is, they did a really good job! This user is obviously a fan of Jayne and Chris, as they also have a lot of other videos of them.

Also, I didn’t realise it but Jayne and Chris were also on “This Morning” yesterday talking about the Piers Morgan interview. Somebody recorded it on their phone, and it can be viewed here.

Thanks, CLFan! They look wonderful. I love how they finish each other's sentences.

They did look great, didn't they! I bet most of today's skaters are hoping that when they reach their 50's, they will look as fresh as Jayne and Chris do now!

And, it is great to see that after all these years the chemistry is still there.

Here is my report on the programme. I have deliberately written it in such a way as to not give too much away to anybody who wants an idea of what it is about, but at the same time wants watch the programme without knowing exactly what Jayne and Chris said.

I watched the Torvill and Dean episode of “Life Stories” over the weekend, and I have to say it was not exactly what I was expecting.

The programme has changed a lot since I last watched it. For all his faults, Piers Morgan is very good at his job as a serious journalist and a very tough interviewer. “Life Stories” used to be like that, but it isn’t any more. That interview could easily have been on a light entertainment programme like “This Morning” instead.

Also, the programme was far too short. When “Life Stories” first started, there was the normal hour-long programme, but there was also an extended hour-and-a-half-long version. Torvill and Dean could easily have filled a longer programme. Like, they are famous for being successful skaters, but the programme barely scraped the surface of their skating career.

But, although it was short, it was very interesting nevertheless. I wasn’t born when they won the Olympics in 1984. So, although I knew it was a big thing, I didn’t realise it was quite THAT big! I really cannot imagine the whole country getting behind any of our modern-day athletes like that, or giving them such a massive celebration if they came home as champions.

I loved the insight into Chris’ childhood. That must have been terrible for him, and you couldn’t help but really feel for him. As Jayne said later on, it really did help explain his reaction to things that happened later in his life.

It was also very interesting when they were talking about Chris’ marriages, and his current relationship with Karen. But when they were talking about how Chris got together with Isabelle Duchesnay, I noticed that they made a point of not mentioning the name of the Swiss skater he was seeing around that time. I take it that she’s got her own family and all now and didn’t want to be brought into the spotlight again. But, it didn’t stop my brain going into overdrive trying to figure it out!!! (It’s maybe a good job I only really know skaters from the past decade!)

Although I found all the stuff about Chris interesting, I think they could have talked a bit more about Jayne. Like, the only thing about her that the interview focussed in on was her not being able to have children.

Not having children was undoubtedly a big aspect of Jayne’s life, which was very upsetting for her (and which made us viewers upset as well). But focussing in on only this made it look like this was the only aspect of her life that Jayne was willing to talk about. Whereas Chris had opened up about his childhood and his relationships, it looked as if Jayne was reluctant to open up about anything else.

Of course, this was probably just a case of the producers trying to fit as much juicy stuff into a 44 minute programme as possible, be it by editing down what had originally been filmed, or by carefully choosing which questions to ask before filming started. But, to the average viewer, it would have looked unbalanced.

And what is the obsession with “did they/didn’t they”?! Does it really matter?! Sure, to be in a competitive partnership (be it in Pairs or Dance), there has to be a certain amount of chemistry. Otherwise, there will be tension between the partners, which will inevitably spill out onto the rink at some stage. Although there are many reasons why so many partnerships split up, just plain not getting along has to be one of the main ones.

Elena Ilynikh and Nikita Katsalapov are the only current skating partners that I know are involved with each other. And, yes, it shows on the ice. Many commentators complain about skating partners not being convincing at putting across the impression of a couple in love. But with Elena and Nikita, there is never that problem. The chemistry between them is amazing, and you can see in the way they look at each other that they are deeply in love.

But, am I desperate to know if anybody else is involved with their skating partner? No. Frankly, it is nobody’s business but the skaters themselves! (And, possibly, their coach). Of course, if they have an argument or break up, that can have repercussions on the ice – in the worse case scenario it could spell the end of a potentially promising skating partnership. But, otherwise, we can all happily go along in total ignorance of whether anything is going on or not, without it affecting anybody!

One thing that did get to me a bit was the fact that practically the entire programme after the final set of ads was about “Dancing On Ice”. For those that live outside the UK and didn’t realise, “Life Stories” and “Dancing On Ice” are shown by the same channel (ITV). And Torvill and Dean’s episode of “Life Stories” just happened to be broadcast on the day before the final of “Dancing On Ice”!

That Torvill and Dean’s episode of “Life Stories” was broadcast on Friday had nothing to do with the World Figure Skating Championships being on held this week. It was a shameless attempt by ITV to promote the final of “Dancing On Ice”. And the final 9 minutes of the programme made that blindingly obvious.

Sure, “Dancing On Ice” played a big role in Jayne and Chris’ recent history. It got them back together after a decade apart; it got them back in the public eye; it led to the break-up of Chris’ 2nd marriage; and it led to the start of Chris’ relationship with Karen.

But, bearing in mind that Jayne and Chris started skating together 38 years ago, and “Dancing On Ice” has only been going for 8 of those years, I think devoting a whole section of the programme to it was a bit over the top.

As I have never watched “Dancing On Ice”, I am probably totally ignorant about its importance to the Torvill and Dean story. But, personally, I would have thought that talking about their highly-successful competitive skating career would have been more important than talking about a TV programme that they are involved in.

Overall, though, it was a really enjoyable and insightful programme. But, another half hour (or, even better, 3/4 of an hour ) would have made all the difference.

So, that is my take on the programme. I hope you have enjoyed reading my report on it.

But, what I've decided to do is to watch the interview again next week, and type it out as it goes along. It will be a big undertaking, but it'll be worth it!

A handy little project which will provoke thoughts of the "good old days" before I got into skating, and at the same time help me avoid getting withdrawal symptoms while the modern-day figure skaters are having their off-season!

What's most interesting about Dancing on Ice is it happened after Torvill and Dean had retired. They hadn't skated together in more than seven years and were living very separate lives on different sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The enormity of the show's success is also a bit stunning. They are almost more famous now than at the height of their competitive careers.

They did look great, didn't they! I bet most of today's skaters are hoping that when they reach their 50's, they will look as fresh as Jayne and Chris do now!

And, it is great to see that after all these years the chemistry is still there.

Here is my report on the programme. I have deliberately written it in such a way as to not give too much away to anybody who wants an idea of what it is about, but at the same time wants watch the programme without knowing exactly what Jayne and Chris said.

I watched the Torvill and Dean episode of “Life Stories” over the weekend, and I have to say it was not exactly what I was expecting.

The programme has changed a lot since I last watched it. For all his faults, Piers Morgan is very good at his job as a serious journalist and a very tough interviewer. “Life Stories” used to be like that, but it isn’t any more. That interview could easily have been on a light entertainment programme like “This Morning” instead.

Also, the programme was far too short. When “Life Stories” first started, there was the normal hour-long programme, but there was also an extended hour-and-a-half-long version. Torvill and Dean could easily have filled a longer programme. Like, they are famous for being successful skaters, but the programme barely scraped the surface of their skating career.

But, although it was short, it was very interesting nevertheless. I wasn’t born when they won the Olympics in 1984. So, although I knew it was a big thing, I didn’t realise it was quite THAT big! I really cannot imagine the whole country getting behind any of our modern-day athletes like that, or giving them such a massive celebration if they came home as champions.

I loved the insight into Chris’ childhood. That must have been terrible for him, and you couldn’t help but really feel for him. As Jayne said later on, it really did help explain his reaction to things that happened later in his life.

It was also very interesting when they were talking about Chris’ marriages, and his current relationship with Karen. But when they were talking about how Chris got together with Isabelle Duchesnay, I noticed that they made a point of not mentioning the name of the Swiss skater he was seeing around that time. I take it that she’s got her own family and all now and didn’t want to be brought into the spotlight again. But, it didn’t stop my brain going into overdrive trying to figure it out!!! (It’s maybe a good job I only really know skaters from the past decade!)

Although I found all the stuff about Chris interesting, I think they could have talked a bit more about Jayne. Like, the only thing about her that the interview focussed in on was her not being able to have children.

Not having children was undoubtedly a big aspect of Jayne’s life, which was very upsetting for her (and which made us viewers upset as well). But focussing in on only this made it look like this was the only aspect of her life that Jayne was willing to talk about. Whereas Chris had opened up about his childhood and his relationships, it looked as if Jayne was reluctant to open up about anything else.

Of course, this was probably just a case of the producers trying to fit as much juicy stuff into a 44 minute programme as possible, be it by editing down what had originally been filmed, or by carefully choosing which questions to ask before filming started. But, to the average viewer, it would have looked unbalanced.

And what is the obsession with “did they/didn’t they”?! Does it really matter?! Sure, to be in a competitive partnership (be it in Pairs or Dance), there has to be a certain amount of chemistry. Otherwise, there will be tension between the partners, which will inevitably spill out onto the rink at some stage. Although there are many reasons why so many partnerships split up, just plain not getting along has to be one of the main ones.

Elena Ilynikh and Nikita Katsalapov are the only current skating partners that I know are involved with each other. And, yes, it shows on the ice. Many commentators complain about skating partners not being convincing at putting across the impression of a couple in love. But with Elena and Nikita, there is never that problem. The chemistry between them is amazing, and you can see in the way they look at each other that they are deeply in love.

But, am I desperate to know if anybody else is involved with their skating partner? No. Frankly, it is nobody’s business but the skaters themselves! (And, possibly, their coach). Of course, if they have an argument or break up, that can have repercussions on the ice – in the worse case scenario it could spell the end of a potentially promising skating partnership. But, otherwise, we can all happily go along in total ignorance of whether anything is going on or not, without it affecting anybody!

One thing that did get to me a bit was the fact that practically the entire programme after the final set of ads was about “Dancing On Ice”. For those that live outside the UK and didn’t realise, “Life Stories” and “Dancing On Ice” are shown by the same channel (ITV). And Torvill and Dean’s episode of “Life Stories” just happened to be broadcast on the day before the final of “Dancing On Ice”!

That Torvill and Dean’s episode of “Life Stories” was broadcast on Friday had nothing to do with the World Figure Skating Championships being on held this week. It was a shameless attempt by ITV to promote the final of “Dancing On Ice”. And the final 9 minutes of the programme made that blindingly obvious.

Sure, “Dancing On Ice” played a big role in Jayne and Chris’ recent history. It got them back together after a decade apart; it got them back in the public eye; it led to the break-up of Chris’ 2nd marriage; and it led to the start of Chris’ relationship with Karen.

But, bearing in mind that Jayne and Chris started skating together 38 years ago, and “Dancing On Ice” has only been going for 8 of those years, I think devoting a whole section of the programme to it was a bit over the top.

As I have never watched “Dancing On Ice”, I am probably totally ignorant about its importance to the Torvill and Dean story. But, personally, I would have thought that talking about their highly-successful competitive skating career would have been more important than talking about a TV programme that they are involved in.

Overall, though, it was a really enjoyable and insightful programme. But, another half hour (or, even better, 3/4 of an hour ) would have made all the difference.

So, that is my take on the programme. I hope you have enjoyed reading my report on it.

CaroLiza_fan

Elena and Nikita are not involved with each other off the ice. She's been dating their coach for the past year or so.

Elena and Nikita are not involved with each other off the ice. She's been dating the sleazeball that coaches them.

WHAT?!

I remember reading a story about a year ago saying that Elena and Nikita had been seeing each other (with the odd break) since they were youngsters, but had only made it public when they became really famous and people started speculating.

The writers must have got it wrong, or else it was an old story I was reading...! (The perils of the internet!)

Well, if they are not dating, then their performances on the ice are even more impressive! They certainly had me convinced!

Apologies for the mistake.

So, Morozov has done it again. How does he manage to capture the interest of all these beautiful girls?

If you're reading this Nikolai – call me. I need tips!!!

Right, back to topic. I'll be starting to type out the transcript of the interview shortly. So keep your eyes peeled...!

Finally!!! My transcript is finished!!! :D :D :D

Firstly, apologies that it has taken this long to complete my transcript of the Torvill and Dean edition of “Life Stories”.

As I wrote above, I could not find a copy of the transcript on the internet, so I decided to watch it with the subtitles on, and type them out manually.

One thing that has always really wound me up about subtitles is that quite often they do not exactly match what is being spoken. Sometimes, the person typing them out re-words things to make the statement fit better on the screen. Or, perhaps pure laziness! And because of this, I developed a real dislike for the people who type out subtitles.

When I went to re-watch “Life Stories” with the subtitles on, I found that this had also happened here. So, in the end I decided to make out my own transcript.

Now that I have done it, I have a real sympathy for the people who type out subtitles. You would not believe how much people can say in a small space of time, and how long it takes to type it out precisely! Put it like this – I was finding that it took about an hour to type out just 5 minutes-worth of talking.

It is a very boring job to do, so much so that if you don’t take a short break after every five minutes sitting at it, it would drive you mad!

So, to those people that do this for a living – well done! Most people do not properly appreciate the hard work you do, but I am now one person that does!

Anyway, I am going to post each section of the programme as a separate post, as the full 46 minutes of the programme filled up 23 A4 pages!!! Somehow, I don’t think you would want a single post that was that long!!!

Oh, and for handiness, I have included a link to the video of that part of the programme at the start of each part's transcript!

Transcript of Part 1

Jayne Torvil and Christopher Dean are Britain’s most famous sporting double act. [Pause] Olympic Gold with that Bolero performance which wowed the nation.

Jayne Torvill

Quite exciting.

PM

This is the first time they’ve really sat down together and given an in-depth television interview. Really new territory for both of them.

JT

He is coming across as a real gentleman, but then he does hit people with those probing questions, so er, I guess we’ll have to be ready for that.

PM

I’ll be quite interested to know whether they were more nervous before their Olympic performances, or when they sit down tonight and are facing me.

PM

There’s one question everybody really wants to know: did they?

Christopher Dean

I think Piers is going to ask us about skating, what do you think?

JT

[Laughs] Not a chance

JT & CD

[Both Laugh]

PM

Welcome

[Roll Titles]

Studio

PM

Jayne Torvill, Christopher Dean. I feel like I’m sitting down with Morecombe and Wise [CD does skip dance in chair], or a Lennon and McCartney, or Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, because I’ve never interviewed a double-act before. But you don’t do many in-depth interviews together like this. Why did you feel now was the time?

JT

I think we thought it was an opportunity to tell our life story, people see us on television, more recently on “Dancing On Ice”, and just see those little moments of training, but you don’t really get to know us as people.

PM

Chris, how long have you been together as a partnership?

CD

Trying to work this out the other day, actually, and, erm, we have skated together for 38 years.

PM

Have you really?

CD

Yeah

[Audience applauds. JT slumps back in chair as if in her dotage]

CD

I was trying to do the maths the other day. How far that is that we’ve skated. And I’ve figured it’s around 250,000 miles, so…

PM

[Laughs]

CD

…10 times round the world

PM

Is that what it is?

CD

Something like that

PM

When you work that out, I mean, how does that make you feel?

CD

Old

[Laughter, led by PM]

JT

We were… We were only 5 when we started skating together.

CD

Oh, right. I’m sorry. Jayne’s got a stage age

[More laughter]

PM

Who’s the boss? I mean, is there a boss?

JT

I think Chris thinks he’s the boss

CD

Mmmmm

[Laughter]

PM

Chris, am I right in thinking Jayne’s the boss, then?

[Laughter, led by PM]

CD

Can you see where her hand is right now? [Leans forward to show his back]

[Laughter]

PM

Do you ever ague? I mean, have you ever had spectacular rows?

JT

We’ve had arguments, but we have less and less nowadays, because we get to a point where… perhaps a bit tense with each other and we kinda go, “oh, can’t be bothered”

[Laughter, led by PM]

JT

It’ll take too long, too much energy

CD

It’s a wonderful thing, isn’t it?

JT

Yeah. Yeah.

PM

I thought it would be quite fun to treat you almost like a married couple, and ask each of you about the other. So, Jayne. Let me start with you. How would you describe Chris to a stranger?

JT

To a stranger? Like a blonde prince. He’s very focused and intense, but he does have a sense of humour as well… [Small laugh]

CD

You have to look for it really closely

JT [at same time]

…if you look hard [Burst into laughter]

[Laughter]

PM

What’s his single most annoying habit?

JT

Urgh, he always wants to be on time. Em, and in fact, he’s always early.

PM

[Laughs]

JT

…So if it’s 9 o’clock, he’s there at quarter-to. And then he’s looking at his watch at 1-minute to, or he’ll call me “Where are you, where are you?” It’s not nine yet. Once we were in New York, and we were meant to meet up at a certain time. And I was shopping and I was late. And he called the police.

[Laughter]

JT

[While still laughing] He thought I was in hospital. And I laughed when he told me. He was furious.

[Laughter]

PM

What was going through your mind?

CD

She shouldn’t have been that late. It was New York.

JT

So? I’m always late!

CD

[inaudible] it’s New York, you [inaudible]

PM

What did you think had happened to her?

CD

Well, anything could have happened in New York, couldn’t it? She could’ve been mugged, she could’ve been abducted, she could’ve been…

JT

I was in Gap. I was in… [drowned out by Laughter]

PM

It’s like Mr And Mrs, this, isn’t it?

[More Laughter]

PM

Alright Chris, let’s turn to you. Describe Jayne as if you were talking to a stranger about her.

JT

I’m really close, by the way

CD

I know

[Laughter]

PM

You’re scared of her, I can tell that already!

CD

The honest truth is… erm, and it’s gonna sound cheesy. But in my eyes she is everything I would want her to be. She’s…

[Awww, and Applause]

CD

She compliments what I try to do

PM

For all intensive purposes, you could be a married couple, and yet [pointing at JT] you’ve been very happily married for 20 years, [pointing at CD] you’ve been married twice and divorced twice, and we’ll come to that, but…

CD

[Nervously] Will we?

PM

[Matter-of-factly] Well, yes.

CD

[Slumps down and puts head in hands]

PM

[Confidently] Oh yes!

JT

It’s gonna be a long night!

PM

In a lotta detail! We’ve got a long night ahead of us, erm. But you won 7 British Championships, 4 Europeans Championships, 4 World Championships, 5 World Professional Championships, Gold and then Bronze at the Olympics. Pretty amazing, right?

[Applause, JT laughs]

PM

You also, like all great sportsmen, er, you are a bit weird. So, you have these weird little things that you do. Jayne, you had… [reaches down to side of chair]

JT

Oh God!

PM

… these [produces a pair of tatty socks]

JT

I know! Look at the state of them!

PM

The lucky socks. Look at the state of these!

JT

These were socks I wore, erm, in every major competition. And because we were performing night after night, I had to wear them. And they just disintegrated to the point where one of the wardrobe people put a new pair of socks inside. Cos they said “Can we throw them away?” And I was like “No. No.” And I think…

PM

Do you still use these?

JT

No. No. I’m over it now.

PM

But you carry them…

CD [at same time]

I wouldn’t be holding them if I were you

PM

Chris you had a slightly more… I wouldn’t say embarrassing thing that you did…

CD

Personal

PM

…but, you used to wear a pair of lucky pants

CD

Yeah

PM

Did you always wear these lucky pants…

CD

For a long time

PM [at same time]

…or did you ever fly commando on the rink?

CD

No, you can’t fly commando. When you stop other things don’t, so you…

[Laughter, led by PM and JT]

CD

You have to wear something to keep you contained

PM

I bet you always wondered, right?

CD

No, no.

PM

Let’s take a look back at how you became the most celebrated ice dancing couple in history

Video

PM

Torvill and Dean: Britain’s most famous and best-loved sporting double act

Kelly Holmes (Friend)

Torvill and Dean are legendary. You say that name, you know them straight away

Karen Barber (CD’s girlfriend)

Torvill and Dean: it goes together like salt and pepper.

Robin Cousins

Marks and Spencer’s

[Sorry, I don’t know who she is. It’s too short a clip to put up a name caption here. And, unfortunately, they don’t use her again.]

Egg and chips

Kim Leggitt (JT’s school friend)

Astaire and Rogers

Daniel Whiston (Friend)

Batman and Robin; they come together as a package

PM

In the 4 decades Jayne and Chris have been together they’ve won the hearts of the nation with incredible skating, culminating in an Olympic Gold Medal

Barry Davies (Sports commentator)

They brought an artistry which hadn’t been seen before.

Robin Cousins

They became the new benchmark. They took the best of both of them and created this team which was unbeatable.

PM

More recently, they’ve thrilled viewers with their hit entertainment series, “Dancing On Ice”

Tony Gubba (“Dancing On Ice” commentator)

It’s dance royalty: Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean

Phillip Schofield (“Dancing On Ice” presenter)

For me, I know Torvill and Dean. I love that. I love the fact. “Hi Phillip” [Gasp] It’s Torvill and Dean!

PM

But along the way, they’ve suffered their fair share of controversy: a surprise bronze at their comeback Olympics; marriage breakdowns; and the constant scrutiny of their own relationship

Daniel Whiston

If I had £1 for every time some-one asked me if they were an item, I would be a very, very rich man.

Kim Leggitt

It looks like they are meant to be together

Karen Barber

It added to the mystery of it all

JT

We get on quite well together

CD

She’s OK

JT & CD

[Both Laugh]

Phillip Schofield

They must’ve. Did they? They must’ve.

CD

Just good friends.

JT

[Giggles]

Phillip Schofield

I don’t know. But they must’ve [Laughs]

PM

It’s a long way from a 1950’s Nottinghamshire where Jayne and Chris grew up. Chris was just 6 when his parents separated, a new stepmother, Betty, appeared in the family home, and his mother Mavis severed contact and moved away.

Debbie Roberts (Former assistant & friend)

He always used to say it in a very blasé way that one day he came home from school and she wasn’t there any more. And in the kitchen was another lady.

Karen Barber

Think it was very difficult for, for a young boy to understand and, er, and figure out where his Mum had gone

Debbie Roberts

He needed something else to focus on.

Jo Lunn (friend)

The skating was a release to him, because he is a, he was a very shy little boy. Erm, and... But on the ice he came alive.

PM

And at the same rink was Jayne Torvill, who’d been introduced to the sport on a school trip.

Kim Leggitt

Our teacher, Mrs. Fitzsimons, organised the skating trip. And that was it. Jayne really got the bug. She was just a natural. You just see something and it, it stands out. She stood out.

Jo Lunn

You always could tell that they both got talent, in a different way: Chris had got the flair, and Jayne was always the technician.

PM

Jayne and Chris became Ice Dancing partners

Robin Cousins

It didn’t take long before tongues were going “This could be something very exciting, and put British ice dancing back where it belonged”

PM

Torvill and Dean’s natural flair and hard work took them to British, European and then World domination. And after years spent apart from her son, Chris’ mother Mavis came to see him skate.

Jo Lunn

It wasn’t until they were competing in the British that I was aware that Betty wasn’t his, Chris’, real Mum. And it was by chance when his real Mum came to the championship. And my job was to keep her away, so it wouldn’t affect the skating

Debbie Roberts

Chris didn’t really want to tell his stepmum that he was back in contact with his real Mum, because he knew that that would upset her.

Karen Barber

Eventually, his own feelings got put aside

Jo Lunn

Chris would have liked it to have all been happy, and them to have met and got on very, very well, but that just would never have happened.

Studio

PM

A very complicated thing for a young boy to have to deal with: one day your mother’s there, you had a very good relationship with her; the next she’s gone and you have a stepmum come in. What are your recollections?

CD

I was 6 at the time, I think. One day, Mum said she was leaving. And then I remember her leaving the house. I saw her going out with her case and, a couple of hours later, Betty arrived.

PM

Literally 2 hours later?

CD

Yeah. I had known betty because the couples, erm, had been friends…

PM

There you have these 2 couples who were friends, and Betty left her husband to come and live with your Dad, and your Mum leaves. You had no contact then with your mother for a long time.

CD

Not for the longest time. No. And nothing was said.

PM

Your father never tried to explain it to you?

CD

We never had, we never had a conversation to this day. I don’t know the how or why.

PM

And he sadly died and…

CD

Yes he’s died.

PM

…your stepmother has died

CD

Yes.

PM

But your natural mother is still alive.

CD

Still alive, yes.

PM

And do you feel more comfortable talking about this because your father, in particular, is no longer here?

CD

Yeah, I mean I love my Dad. He was always, to me, he was always there. He was always there. And, erm. When I say always there, I mean he worked every day of his life. So, for me, he was my rock.

PM

Your mother came back a while later, to the area. And you found out about this. And you used to go off on your own, and look up at her new home.

CD

To go to school, I had to walk by it, so there were times that I’d always walk by and try and catch a glimpse of her.

PM

Did you ever see her?

CD

Erm, sometimes tops of the head, because the height of the window [inaudible] I could, I could see…

PM

Were you ever tempted to go in?

CD

[Breaths out] Yeah, I think I was, but, erm… It would have caused, erm, problems at home. Yeah, but, erm… You know, Betty was looking after me.

PM

Your mother came back into your life. Tell me how that happened.

CD

I think she came to a British Championships once. And it wasn’t till after the fact that I found out she was there. And, and after that, erm, we started to communicate. I saw her a few times

PM

Has she ever explained to you why she did what she did?

CD

No. [inaudible]

PM

Have you ever asked?

CD

No.

PM

Do you not want to know?

CD

To me, it’s in the past. I think all the events that have happened to me have made me the person that I am. And I think the one thing that it most probably did, it make me an independent person. And I think that then made me a stronger person. Erm, and then out of that became the determination, because I think, as a kid, I might have been a little bit spoilt. Nowadays I know my Mum will come to the studio to watch some “Dancing On Ice”, and occasionally I’ll look over there, and stuff is happening on the ice, but the only place she looks is at me.

JT [at same time]

She’s looking at him all the time.

CD

She doesn’t take her eyes off me now.

JT

[Chuckles]

CD

I think she wants to make up for all the years lost.

PM

Do you think you’ll ever get closure, though? I don’t want to labour this point, but do you think you’ll ever get closure unless you have the conversation?

CD

Erm… I don’t know whether I want closure. I don’t know whether I want to hear other things about my Dad…

PM

Yeah

CD

…from my Mum’s point of view. You know, my Dad, in my head, was there all the time.

PM

Like a hero to you.

CD

Yeah, yeah. You know, the day that my Dad died, er, it was the most tragic day of my life. You know, when I look back on anything, the moment of absolute tragedy for me in my life was, was that moment.

Coming Up

PM

There’s no easy way of saying this, so I’m just going to spit it out. Did you, or didn’t you?

Transcript of Part 2

In 1975, these 2 worlds collide. And did you feel an instant connection, or do these things take time?

CD

You know, people want to hear that, um, the sun shone, and bells started to ring, and “Hallelujah!” it was all great. But, you know, we went into the Nottingham ice rink at about 5:30 in the morning. We did, like, a 2 hour session of skating, basic stuff like that

JT

We probably, we didn’t say a word to each other, I don’t think.

CD

We were so shy. You know, just barely able to touch hands. But we skated, we got through it, and the coach at the end of the session said, ”What do you think? Are you, are you going to try it out?” And we said, “Let’s give it a week.” And then, after a week, she said “Are you gonna try, are you gonna stay together?” “Let’s give it another couple of weeks, then a month, then a year…”

PM [at same time]

So, you weren’t sure

CD

We still haven’t decided

[Laughter, led by PM]

JT

It became a bit of a superstition that if we said “yeah, we’re gonna stay together” that it would all go wrong. So, we never did.

CD

No, and, you know, we had full-time jobs, I mean, I was a…

PM

Well, you were a policeman.

CD

I was a policeman

PM

You were an insurance clerk at the Norwich Union

JT

[Nods in agreement]

PM

So, you were pretty busy. How did you find the time to give the commitment to skating you have to do to be at the top?

CD

Well, they were all hours that God sent, because I was on shift work, so Jayne kinda had to work around my schedule. So, if I was on afters, I’d work until 10 o’clock, take off the uniform, go down the rink, erm…

JT

We’d skate 10 o’clock at night, didn’t we?

CD [at same time]

We’d skate for 2 or 3 hours, and then start work the next day. So… And that was our life for, oh, 5 years, like.

PM

This is the kind of dedication it takes, isn’t it?

CD

We were so passionate about it. You know, we’d invested a lot of time in skating, and I think we just loved it. And, eventually, we decided that we’ve got to take the leap now and leave our jobs, as an opportunity to progress up the ladder, because we did start placing a little further up into, in the international field.

PM

And actually, you went, I think, Jayne to the dole office to sign on

JT

A lot of skaters at the Nottingham rink, they used to say, “Oh, go and sign on”…

CD

And we were so naïve…

JT [at same time]

…and so we went down, we went down there, and they said “So, what kind of job are you looking for?” And we said, “Oh, we’re not looking for a job.” Because, we didn’t quite get it! [Laughs]

[Laughter]

JT

You can’t sign on, then [Still Laughing]

CD [at same time]

We didn’t know you had to be actively seeking employment. No, we just want to skate. So, we didn’t qualify

PM

So they explained, that’s not how this works.

JT

Yeah.

CD [at same time]

No [inaudible] find you [inaudible]

PM [at same time]

Your next move, you wrote to the council in Nottingham

CD

Yeah.

JT

Yes, erm, somebody said, “Why don’t you write a letter to the council, the city council, because I’ve heard there might… they sometimes sponsor people”…

PM

You got £42,000, not an insignificant sum of money, but not a fortune. Erm, when you heard you got it, did you think, “[Breaths out] OK, we’ve bought ourselves some time”?

JT

It was just amazing.

CD

You said it felt like being a millionaire, didn’t you.

JT

Yeah, I mean in those days…

CD [at same time]

At the time…

JT

…it was like…

CD [at same time]

…it was £7,000 each year, erm…

PM

Could you imagine that in that moment that one day you’d have a housing estate in Nottinghamshire named after you?

You were starting to make your name as world-class skaters, but the best was yet to come.

Video

PM

In the early 80’s, Chris and Jayne’s dedication had paid off when they started racking up British, European and World Championship titles. And their skating technique was becoming ever more sophisticated and daring.

Robin Cousins

They wanted to be innovative with the lifts, they wanted to push the boundaries of where the grey areas were in the rules.

Barry Davies

They bent little rules and demands and, and jolly well done for them because they made it a different sport.

Karen Barber

You always tried to do what they had done the year before. You were never ahead of them. All you could really do was try to keep up. [Whispering] Got annoying after a while!

PM

Jayne and Chris already had their eyes set on the highest accolade of all: a gold at the 1984 Winter Olympics. And to win, they’d have to push those boundaries to the limit, starting with the music.

Sue Barker (Sports presenter)

What could they come up with for the Olympics? Ravel’s “Bolero”? We thought, “No way! This is not gonna, this isn’t going to work.”

Robin Cousins

It was the first time a piece of music like that had been used in its entirety, or at least in a way that was not badly edited and there wasn’t this juxtaposition, this cheesy music in the middle. It was a unique piece.

We’ve bought into this so massively. Don’t let us down. The pressure would have been huge!

PM

The day of “Bolero” arrived, 14th February 1984. The streets were deserted as 24 million people tuned in to watch their ice heroes.

Phillip Schofield

If you were even remotely into skating… or patriotic… or one of those people that happily jumped on a bandwagon… then you remember where you were that night when it all happened.

Robin Cousins

There is nothing like being in an arena when those magic moments happen. You can’t explain to people at home. It’s… It just has that… [Tapping back of neck] You can feel it now, you just remember the, you know, the hairs on the back of the neck go up.

Sue Barker

Kneeling on the ice… You were just lost with the magic. Everybody was in floods of tears. It was beautiful to watch.

Ian Goodman (Chris’ Friend)

When it finished, the place erupted.

Kelly Holmes

It was just one of those moments where you sit and watch, and then it’s just: [Screams] “Wow!!!!!”

Barry Davies

They produced a performance of a lifetime. Seeing success like that from PC Plod and the insurance clerk, golly! Nine sixes! Every one a six!

Karen Barber

They are the marks that have never been beaten since.

Robin Cousins

Everything came together. It was a perfect moment, as the scores, erm, told us.

Sue Barker

I was so proud to be British, and so proud to know them.

PM

The Olympic champions returned to Britain triumphant.

News reporter [sorry, I don’t recognise the voice]

Had they been on skates, the champions might have been able to sweep past the press photographers, who accorded them a welcome normally reserved for Hollywood stars or pop singers.

JT

It’s quite exciting.

Sue Barker

They just were megastars of sport. No-one thought that ice skaters would become that well known, and that loved by the British public.

A different news reporter [sorry, I don’t recognise the voice]

Chris, what do you think of it all here?

CD

It’s too much, really! We really didn’t expect all these people!

Jo Lunn

The amount of people that turned out to support them was amazing

CD

Thank you, really. Thank you very, very much.

[Cheers]

Daniel Weston

They became almost royalty to Great Britain. Every-one was completely in awe of them.

Phillip Schofield

There must have been moments when they thought “Oh My God. You know, I don’t know whether we signed up for this. I this what we really want?” But, by then, too late. Everybody wants a bit of you.

Studio

PM

Watching it again now reminded me of where I was watching it. I remember everybody watching it. What a moment for British sports! Did you feel it was as near to perfect a performance as you could have done?

[CD waves finger]

[Laughter, led by JT]

CD

Now, let me tell you about that. That final position, did you see me roll onto my tummy?

PM

Yes

CD

That wasn’t perfect.

[Laughter, led by JT]

CD

That was the moment that I shouldn’t have rolled onto my tummy.

PM

But they thought it was part of the routine, presumably.

CD

Er, yeah. Presumably

JT

He was probably so relieved he was getting to the end he [makes Flumph noise] went for a dive.

CD

It was so much at the end. It was, I really was impassioned at the end.

PM

I mean Jayne, I realised the technical fault immediately I saw it, but…

JT

Yeah, of course

[Laughter]

PM

Did you realise, in that tiny split-second, that he… he’d done something wrong? Did you fear that may have jeopardised things?

JT

No. I [inaudible], I couldn’t fell it because I was in front of him. I think, form the side, it wouldn’t have looked as bad.

CD

No

JT

No. But also there was this whole…

PM

See what a perfectionist he is! He gets 9 sixes, and all he’s doing is, “It wasn’t quite right”

They were at Sarajevo, and I went to meet them to say goodbye. And my Dad just, was just crying, and my Mum said “Oh, take no notice of him”

[Laughter, led by JT]

JT

“Take no notice”

PM

Were you shocked, I mean he…

JT

I was, actually.

PM [at same time]

…he wasn’t normally an emotional kind of guy.

JT

From any time after that, he never liked to say goodbye. He got a bit emotional, it was almost like he was remembering that moment, too.

CD

But he parents are very much – well, um, and my Dad was – it was just kind of, “You did well, yeah!”

JT

My Dad used to say, um, “Not bad, not bad.” That’s all I ever got from him.

PM

Even after the Olympics?

JT

And my Mum always used to say “Oh, you did really well…” she said, “…but there’s always some-one better than you”

[Laughter]

CD

[Waving finger] Not on this occasion!

[More laughter]

PM

24 million people in Britain watched you win the Gold Medal – a third of the population; quite extraordinary viewing figures. When was the moment that you realised your lives probably weren’t ever going to be the same, that you’d now become these huge stars?

JT

Stepping off the aeroplane coming back to the UK after the last championship and all the people there, it was like “Whoa!”

CD

And going around the city centre, when we were paraded around in the Pope-mobile.

[Laughter]

CD

I mean, it was an amazing time. Erm, and you couldn’t go to Marks and Spencer’s to get your underwear after that.

JT

No.

[Laughter]

PM

There was also – which I don’t think British viewers would have been aware of – but, you produced an album.

[PM reaches down to side of chair, and lifts up an LP]

[JT laughs, and puts head in hands in embarrassment]

PM

“Torvill and Dean: Here We Stand”, this was mainly in Australia. It was never released here. You look very…

CD [at same time]

[Sarcastically] I wonder why?!

[Laughter]

PM

Rather than just playing one of the tracks on the album, when it’s all been polished and the producers have been at it, you produced a demo…

CD

Oh, we didn’t…

PM

This is a world exclusive of the demo song “It Was A Fine Romance”, most famously sung by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, of course. This is the new Ella and Louis.

[CD puts head in hands]

[JT laughs hysterically]

PM

Take a listen to this.

JT [singing]

# A fine romance with no kisses. A fine romance, my friend, this is. #

The British public were hoping that the Torvill and Dean fairytale would continue from the ice to the aisle. But within a few years they were dating – just not each other. Jayne was in a relationship with Phil Christiansen, a sound engineer who worked on their professional tour, and soon it was serious.

Debbie Roberts

Phil proposed to Jayne with the most beautiful engagement ring. Er, which she wore very proudly until… [Pause] …we started the next leg of another tour.

Karen Barber

They kept it to themselves for a long time because… [Pause] …she didn’t want to break the magic of Torvill and Dean

Debbie Roberts

They were encouraged by tour producers and promoters, er, not to be seen with respective partners.

PM

With his skating partner getting hitched, Chris found himself at a crossroads

Debbie Roberts

Jayne getting engaged to Phil… [Pause] …affected Chris in more of a personal way than even a professional way. Because Chris’ answer to that was to get engaged. He was actually dating 2 girls at the time: Isabelle and another, really lovely, Swiss skater. And, unfortunately, he chose the wrong one.

PM

Chris’ new wife, Canadian skater Isabelle Duchesnay, wanted him to concentrate on choreographing her, rather than skating.

Ian Goodman

Isabelle thought that she should be the centre of attention and Chris should not be skating any more.

Debbie Roberts

Contemplating just a life of choreographing I don’t think filled Chris with any kind of inspiration. I think the shock of marrying the wrong person for the wrong reason at the wrong time just devastated him.

Ian Goodman

It did hit him hard for a time.

Debbie Roberts

Chris is absolutely no good on his own. Sometimes you just want to say, “You can cope on your own.” It goes right back to being a 6 year old boy and losing his Mum

PM

Jayne and Phil, meanwhile, were happily married and looking to the future.

Karen Barber

They have a beautiful house and, and hoped for a family. It was the final part of the jigsaw. But then they realised that they were having problems and it might not be as easy as she’d hoped.

Jo Lunn

Jayne sacrificed a lot for skating. Maybe it was left a little bit late, because all her life, until her mid-30’s, it was constantly hard training.

Karen Barber

When you, erm… [clears throat] have had the success that she had, and the Olympic Golds, which is amazing, but… [Pause] …what she really wanted was children.

Debbie Roberts

She had her IVF treatment. She had a dreadful, dreadful ectopic pregnancy, which nearly killed her.

Karen Barber

It’s hard to see… [Breaths out] a friend go through years, really, of, of erm… She just wanted to be a Mum, at the end of the day.

PM

In 2003, that wish was granted, when Jayne and Phil adopted the first of 2 children.

Kim Leggitt

That was the icing on the cake, for her part of her life away from the ice.

Debbie Roberts

Now they have 2 beautiful children, both of which they’ve had since they were tiny babies. And, er… [Pause] …Jayne’s the mother that she always wanted to be.

Studio

PM

Clearly a, a very tough time that you had leading up to, to adopting children. And your friends clearly thought that, really in the end, you’d achieved so much, but what you really wanted was to have a child of your own.

[JT clears throat]

PM

Tell me about that period.

JT

Well, I think, you know, as a couple, skating together, it’s easy for the guy to go off and start a family, because it wouldn’t affect his skating. Whereas for me, I didn’t wanna sort of stop what we were doing, so I left it quite late. And I was sort of well into my 40’s, I think, by then. But then the, erm, having an ectopic pregnancy as well…

PM

Which is a very serious condition.

JT

Yeah, cos I got pregnant quite quickly and I thought, “Oh, this, this is fine.” And, erm, when I went to have a scan, they said I had an ectopic pregnancy, and I didn’t know what that meant. And they, er, said “Well, the, the, er, it’s the embryo growing in one of the tubes.” And I said, “Oh, OK.” I was thinking, “Fine.” I said “So, how do you get it out then?” And they said, “Oh, we don’t. We can’t.” So that’s when it hit me. I was like, “Oh.” So, I went through the surgery, and then it was obviously going to be more difficult, so I tried IVF for about a year. That, as a lot of women will know, it’s traumatic in itself.

PM

The moment you decided to adopt, how did you reach that decision with Phil?

JT

Well, a friend of mine, erm, had adopted a little boy. She said, “Oh, come and, come and see him.” And, erm, at that point, I wasn’t ready to look into adoption. I was still thinking it was gonna happen. And you’ve got to be ready for it if you want to adopt. I said to my husband, “I don’t know if I could… I don’t know if I could do this.” And, erm, I went to see this little boy, and I wanted to bring him home!” [Breaks into a massive smile]

PM

And then you knew?

[JT nods head, gets emotional and starts crying]

[CD puts arm around JT, and starts rubbing her back]

[Applause]

[JT breathes out, sniffles, and composes herself]

[At same time, CD takes his arm back]

PM

What was that feeling like, when you had your little boy and you were a family?

JT

Erm… [Pauses, then laughs] Scary! [Laughs again]

[Brief Laughter]

PM

[Whilst laughing himself] It is terrifying the first time, isn’t it?

JT

Yeah.

PM

But incredibly fulfilling for you, as a woman.

JT

Yeah, I mean, it takes a while to get used to… [Pause] …having… [Gets emotional] Sorry.

[JT getting very emotional, CD puts arm around her]

CD

She’s never talked about it in public before.

PM

No, I realise that.

[JT still very emotional]

PM

Take your time a second

[At same time, CD takes his arm back]

PM

And you went on to have a, you adopted a baby girl, as well. You have these 2 kids, who are growing up very nicely now. Er, how do you find being a mother?

JT

[Now composed] When the second child comes along, it’s amazing the things that, that you do for the first one that you realise “I didn’t really have to go to that extreme.”

[PM Laughs]

JT

And the times I used to leave the house with the, my little girl, and I’d forget to take the bag with all the stuff in and, you know, the milk and the nappies, and the… [Makes buzzing noise] And I used to think “Oh my gosh, what kind of mother am I?!” But then you think, “Well, wait a minute. If I need to, I can go and buy this stuff while I’m out.” But there’s obsessive-ness with the first child.

PM

Yeah

[JT nods]

PM

Chris, er, before we talk about your first marriage…

CD

[Groans] Yeah

PM

…I’ll pick up on something that your friend, and former PA, Debbie said. She said that when you decided to get married, you were dating 2 skaters. First of all, is that true?

CD

I don’t know whether that’s in her head.

[At same time, CD waves index finger of right hand]

CD

At some point, there was a Swiss girl…

[At same time, CD waves index finger of left hand]

CD

…but I don’t think it was at the same time, no.

[At same time, CD brings two index fingers together beside each other, then takes them away]

PM

She felt you made the wrong choice, you should have gone with the other skater.

CD

I think Debbie, erm, and everybody else I knew thoughht it was the wrong choice.

[PM grunts]

CD

Everybody. [Looks around at JT] Did you think it was the wrong choice?

JT

[Immediately] Yep.

[Laughter, led by JT]

PM

Your wedding day to Isabelle…

[JT clears throat]

PM

…she’d planned it all, she had…

CD

Her and her mother.

PM

…she had photographers there, camera crews. It was a huge event.

CD

[Grumbling] Yeah, it was.

PM

She was the star.

CD

[Grumbling] I turned up.

PM

Yeah.

[Laughter, led by JT and CD]

PM

Is that how it felt to you?

CD

[Immediately] Yeah.

PM

We have a picture of you on the wedding day. [Shows photo] Do you think that you loved her?

[Long pause. CD screws up face. Another long pause]

JT

Answer. [Punches CD’s arm] Answer.

[Laughter]

[JT Laughs. PM has a cheeky smile]

CD

The love thing… [Waves right hand] …that’s a very hard thing for me. I go back to the childhood thing, the mother thing. And, erm, I think that love thing’s hard for me, to find.

PM

I bet it is!

CD

Yeah.

PM

Because you had it for your mother and she left you.

CD

Yeah.

PM

When you got divorced, Isabelle claimed that you were very cold. She also said you’d had a string of lovers.

[CD shakes head]

PM

Was that, was either true

CD

[Breaths in and shakes head] No. No, I don’t think I was cold. And as for a string of lovers, no, no, I don’t have strings of lovers.

PM [at same time]

How long’s a piece of string?

[CD breathes in, and shakes head]

PM

Could there have been any particles of string?

CD

No, no.

PM

A dabble?

[Laughter]

[CD does not look impressed]

CD

No, I can honestly say, each relationship I was in, I was faithful until it finished.

Coming Up

[CD gasps, leans head back, then returns to position]

CD

It was like you rushed towards this wall [Leans back and puts hands up] and crashed, and I didn’t know it was going to be like this.